THE FIFA MA YOUTH COACHING COURSE OFFICIALLY OPENED

The FIFA MA Youth Coaching Course was officially opened by the President of the National Football Association of Swaziland (NFAS) on Monday 10th July 2017 at Emtfonjeni Building in Lobamba. Other dignitaries present during this event was the FIFA Instructor, Mr Serame Letsoaka, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the NFAS; Mr Frederick Mngomezulu, the Chief Operations Officer (COO) of the Premier League of Swaziland (PLS); Mr Petros Vilakati, the Technical Director (TD) of the NFAS; Mr Bhekisisa Mkhonta, the Participants and the Media. This is the first FIFA Course under the Youth Coaching Course.

When addressing the audience, the President of the NFAS highlighted that it is very important to develop the game of football more especially at the youth stage. “ It is very important to develop football and most especially from the youth stage as it lays a good foundation for the sustainability of the beautiful game as chances are high that with solid foundation in as far as player development is concerned, the players will be more successful”, the President of the NFAS said. The President of the NFAS was also very excited to see familiar faces in this event as it was a sign of commitment to those participants and moreover, they are doing a great job in assisting the NFAS in developing football. Lastly, Senator Adam Mthethwa told the participants that he hopes that the participants will plough back what they will learn from this course back to their respective clubs.

Also, the FIFA Instructor had some few words to share with the audience. He highlighted that he was very much honoured to be the instructor of such an important course as the future of the beautiful game is with the youth. “I am very much honoured and privileged to be here and I also commend the NFAS for putting this course in collaboration with FIFA”, said the FIFA Instructor. He also elaborated the importance of youth development in the sport as he compared football to a school due to the fact that it takes a lot of hours to put up a player. “Football is like a school, as it takes about 10 000 hours to put up a player at his/ her best”, he said. Mr. Serame also encouraged the country to invest early on players as there will be more sustainability in the local game of football. He also noted that Swaziland has a lot of potential in football compared to other countries, and with good foundation, the local game of football can have proper growth. Lastly, he also highlighted that the PLS is a strong league compared to other leagues which is an indication on its own that the local game is growing to greater heights.

This course is attended by Youth Coaches from the PLS Clubs, Regions and other personnel involved in youth coaching. The course is expected to end on Friday, 14th July 2014.